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We report measurements on the synchronization properties of organ pipes. First, we investigate influence of an external acoustical signal from a loudspeaker on the sound of an organ pipe. Second, the mutual influence of two pipes with different pitch is analyzed. In analogy to the externally driven, or mutually coupled self-sustained oscillators, one observes a frequency locking, which can be explained by synchronization theory. Further, we measure the dependence of the frequency of the signals emitted by two mutually detuned pipes with varying distance between the pipes. The spectrum shows a broad '' hump '' structure, not found for coupled oscillators. This indicates a complex coupling of the two organ pipes leading to nonlinear beat phenomena.
A key technology for large eddy simulation (LES) of complex flows is an appropriate wall modeling strategy. In this paper we apply for the first time a fully nonparametric procedure for the estimation of generalized additive models (GAM) by conditional statistics. As a database, we use DNS and wall-resolved LES data of plane channel flow for Reynolds numbers, Re = 2800, 4000 (DNS) and 10,935, 22,776 (LES). The statistical method applied is a quantitative tool for the identification of important model terms, allowing for an identification of some of the near-wall physics. The results are given as nonparametric functions which cannot be attained by other methods. We investigated a generalized model which includes Schumann's and Piomelli et al.'s model. A strong influence of the pressure gradient in the viscous sublayer is found; for larger wall distances the spanwise pressure gradient even dominates the tau(w,zy). component. The first a posteriori LES results are given.
New amphiphilic compounds 1-9 that feature a construction with dendronized hydrophilic and hydrophobic segment groups connected to a specific aromatic or aliphatic spacer unit have been synthesized, following a modular building block strategy. The hydrophilic dendrons are typically branched elements with peripheral carboxylic groups, unlike the hydrophobic dendrons that contain peripheral alkyl chains as part of respective amide functions. The hydrophilic dendrons are in different generations of branching, while the hydrophobic dendrons are all in the first generation of branching (three terminal branching), but differ in the length of the alkyl chains, thus giving rise to designed structure and amphiphilic properties in the new compounds. The resulting surfactants are capable of forming well-defined Langmuir films of remarkable stability when spread from a solution onto an aqueous subphase. Nevertheless, specific packing behaviour and orientation of the amphiphilic molecules were found, depending on the molecular structure, as determined using analysis of the surface pressure-area (pi-A) isotherms. Langmuir-Blodgett transfer of the first monolayer from a pure water subphase to a clean silicon wafer proved possible for the amphiphiles of peripheral alkyl chain length C-12, while the amphiphiles with the longer alkyl chains failed, possibly due to the more rigid monolayers they form, impeding the transfer.
Since their discovery in 1610 by Galileo Galilei, Saturn's rings continue to fascinate both experts and amateurs. Countless numbers of icy grains in almost Keplerian orbits reveal a wealth of structures such as ringlets, voids and gaps, wakes and waves, and many more. Grains are found to increase in size with increasing radial distance to Saturn. Recently discovered "propeller" structures in the Cassini spacecraft data, provide evidence for the existence of embedded moonlets. In the wake of these findings, the discussion resumes about origin and evolution of planetary rings, and growth processes in tidal environments. In this thesis, a contact model for binary adhesive, viscoelastic collisions is developed that accounts for agglomeration as well as restitution. Collisional outcomes are crucially determined by the impact speed and masses of the collision partners and yield a maximal impact velocity at which agglomeration still occurs. Based on the latter, a self-consistent kinetic concept is proposed. The model considers all possible collisional outcomes as there are coagulation, restitution, and fragmentation. Emphasizing the evolution of the mass spectrum and furthermore concentrating on coagulation alone, a coagulation equation, including a restricted sticking probability is derived. The otherwise phenomenological Smoluchowski equation is reproduced from basic principles and denotes a limit case to the derived coagulation equation. Qualitative and quantitative analysis of the relevance of adhesion to force-free granular gases and to those under the influence of Keplerian shear is investigated. Capture probability, agglomerate stability, and the mass spectrum evolution are investigated in the context of adhesive interactions. A size dependent radial limit distance from the central planet is obtained refining the Roche criterion. Furthermore, capture probability in the presence of adhesion is generally different compared to the case of pure gravitational capture. In contrast to a Smoluchowski-type evolution of the mass spectrum, numerical simulations of the obtained coagulation equation revealed, that a transition from smaller grains to larger bodies cannot occur via a collisional cascade alone. For parameters used in this study, effective growth ceases at an average size of centimeters.
In planetary rings, binary collisions and mutual gravity are the predominant particle interactions. Based on a viscoelastic contact model we implement the concept of static adhesion. We discuss the collision dynamics and obtain a threshold velocity for restitution or agglomeration to occur. The latter takes place within a range of a few cm s(-1) for icy grains at low temperatures. The stability of such two-body agglomerates bound by adhesion and gravity in a tidal environment is discussed and applied to the saturnian system. A maximal agglomerate size for a given orbit location is obtained. In this way we are able to resolve the borderline of the zone where agglomerates can exist as a function of the agglomerate size and thus gain an alternative to the classical Roche limit. An increasing ring grain size with distance to Saturn as observed by the VIMS-experiment on board the Cassini spacecraft can be found by our estimates and implications for the saturnian system will be addressed.
In Allefeld & Kurths [2004], we introduced an approach to multivariate phase synchronization analysis in the form of a Synchronization Cluster Analysis (SCA). A statistical model of a synchronization cluster was described, and an abbreviated instruction on how to apply this model to empirical data was given, while an implementation of the corresponding algorithm was (and is) available from the authors. In this letter, the complete details on how the data analysis algorithm is to be derived from the model are filled in.
The acetone extracts of the root bark and stem bark of Erythrina sacleuxii showed antiplasmodial activities against the chloroquine-sensitive (D6) and chloroquine-resistant (W2) strains of Plasmodium falciparum. Chromatographic separation of the acetone extract of the root bark afforded a new isoflavone, 7-hydroxy-4 -methoxy-3'- prenylisoflavone (trivial name 5-deoxy-3' - prenylbiochanin A) along with known isoflavonoids as the antiplasmodial principles. Flavonoids and isoflavonoids isolated from the stem bark of E. sucleuxii were also tested and showed antiplasmodial activities. The structures were determined on the basis of spectroscopic evidence.
The acetone extracts of the root bark and stem bark of Erythrina sacleuxii showed antiplasmodial activities against the chloroquine-sensitive (D6) and chloroquine-resistant (W2) strains of Plasmodium falciparum. Chromatographic separation of the acetone extract of the root bark afforded a new isoflavone, 7-hydroxy-4 -methoxy-3'- prenylisoflavone (trivial name 5-deoxy-3' - prenylbiochanin A) along with known isoflavonoids as the antiplasmodial principles. Flavonoids and isoflavonoids isolated from the stem bark of E. sucleuxii were also tested and showed antiplasmodial activities. The structures were determined on the basis of spectroscopic evidence
A comparative study on the nutritional status of primiparous and multiparous women in the first trimester of pregnancy was conducted in the northeastern province of Thailand, Khon Kaen, to investigate differences in protein- energy-mal nutrition, iron deficiency anaemia, vitamin A deficiency and carotenoid status between both parity groups. 94 subjects were recruited at first attendance of antenatal clinic. Data about weight, height, haemoglobin and haematocrit were obtained from hospital records. Anthropometric measurements of mid-upper arm circumference and triceps skinfold were done on a sub sample. Retinol, carotenoids and alpha-tocopherol were analysed using a reversed-phase high- performance liquid chromatography method. Ferritin, transthyretin and retinol-binding protein were determined by enzyme- linked immunosorbent assay. Primiparous women showed lower body mass index, mid-upper arm circumference, corrected arm muscle area (P <0.001) as well as lower retinol, cholesterol and triceps skinfold (P <0.05). After adjusting for age and socio-economical status the significant difference persisted for all parameters but triceps skinfold. No significant differences of alpha-tocopherol, serum proteins, carotenoids and iron indices could be observed, even though a tendency to higher values for ferritin, haemoglobin and haematocrit was shown in multiparous women. Prevalence of protein-energy- malnutrition (body mass index <18.5 kg/m(2)) in the primiparous group was significantly higher compared to the multiparous group (P<0.05). Prevalence of protein-energy-malnutrition, iron deficiency anaemia and vitamin A deficiency were 15.1%, 6.3% and 3.3%, respectively, in the total study population. No differences between parity groups could be observed for prevalence of iron deficiency anaemia and vitamin A deficiency
Peptide microarrays displaying biologically active small synthetic peptides in a high-density format provide an attractive technology to probe complex samples for the presence and/or function of protein analytes. We present a new approach for manufacturing functional peptide microarrays for molecular immune diagnostics. Our method relies on the efficiency of site-specific solution-phase coupling of biotinylated synthetic peptides to NeutrAvidin (NA) and localized microdispensing of peptide-NA-complexes onto activated glass surfaces. Antibodies are captured in a sandwich manner between surface immobilized peptide probes and fluorescence-labeled secondary antibodies. Our work includes a total of 54 peptides derived from immunodominant linear epitopes of the T7 phage capsid protein, Herpes simplex virus glycoprotein D, c-myc protein, and three domains of the Human coronavirus polymerase polyprotein and their cognate mAbs. By using spacer molecules of different type and length for NA-mediated peptide presentation, we show that the incorporation of a minimum spacer length is imperative for antibody binding, whereas the peptide immobilization direction has only secondary importance for antibody affinity and binding. We further demonstrate that the peptide array is capable of detecting low-picomolar concentrations of mAbs in buffered solutions and diluted human serum with high specificity
Peptide microarrays with site-specifically immobilized synthetic peptides for antibody diagnostics
(2006)
Peptide microarrays bear the potential to discover molecular recognition events on protein level, particularly in the field of molecular immunology, in a manner and with an efficiency comparable to the performance of DNA microarrays. We developed a novel peptide microarray platform for the detection of antibodies in liquid samples. The system comprises site-specific solution phase coupling of biotinylated peptides to NeutrAvidin, localized microdispensing of peptide-NeutrAvidin conjugates onto activated glass slides and a fluorescence immuno sandwich assay format for antibody capture and detection. Our work includes synthetic peptides deduced from amino acid sequences of immunodominant linear epitopes, such as the T7 phage capsid protein, Herpes simplex virus glycoprotein D, c-myc protein and three domains of the Human coronavirus 229E polymerase polyprotein. We demonstrate that our method produces peptide arrays with excellent spot morphology which are capable of specific and sensitive detection of monoclonal antibodies from fluid samples.
The results of a quantum-mechanical study of vibrational relaxation of hydrogen adsorbed on a Si(100) surface with the multi-configurational time-dependent Hartree (MCTDH) method are presented. A two-dimensional subsystem is coupled non-linearly to a bath of harmonic oscillators (phonons of the Si bulk), and the relaxation of subsystem vibrations proceeds primarily via a two-phonon process. Characteristic times of the system evolution agree well with our previous perturbation theory study. The vibrational population decay is non-exponential, exhibiting pronounced recurrences due to finite bath size. The dependence of the lifetimes of the vibrational levels on the bath size and on the coupling details is investigated.
In this paper a perturbation-theory study of vibrational lifetimes for the bending and stretching modes of hydrogen adsorbed on a Si(100) surface is presented. The hydrogen-silicon interaction is treated with a semiempirical bond-order potential. Calculations are performed for H-Si clusters of different sizes. The finite lifetime is due to vibration-phonon coupling, which is assumed to be linear or bilinear in the phonon and nonlinear in the H-Si stretching and bending modes. Lifetimes and vibrational transition rates are evaluated with one- and two-phonon processes taken into account. Temperature effects are also discussed. In agreement with the experiment and previous theoretical treatment it is found that the H-Si (upsilon(s)=1) stretching vibration decays on a nanosecond timescale, whereas for the H-Si (upsilon(b)=1) bending mode a picosecond decay is predicted. For higher-excited vibrations, simple scaling laws are found if the excitation energies are not too large. The relaxation mechanisms for the excited H-Si stretching and the H-Si bending modes are analyzed in detail.
We propose a new autonomous dynamical system of dimension N=4 that demonstrates the regime of stable two- frequency motions and period-doubling bifurcations of a two-dimensional torus. It is shown that the period-doubling bifurcation of the two-dimensional torus is not followed by the resonance phenomenon, and the two-dimensional ergodic torus undergoes a period-doubling bifurcation. The interaction of two generators is also analyzed. The phenomenon of external and mutual synchronization of two-frequency oscillations is observed, for which winding number locking on a two- dimensional torus takes place
Seasonal, host sex and age-related variations in helminth egg and coccidian oocyst counts were investigated in a naturally infected wild bushbuck (Tragelaphus scriptus) population in Queen Elizabeth National Park, western Uganda from April 2000 to February 2002. The prevalence and mean intensity quantified as the number of eggs and oocysts per gram of faeces were taken as a measure of parasite burdens. Host sex and age-related differences in prevalence values were not found but the overall prevalence of Eimeria sp. was significantly higher during the rainy season, and peak counts were recorded either during or soon after a peak rainfall. A similar trend was observed for Moniezia spp., although the results were marginally not significant. There were also no significant differences in mean intensity values, relative to host sex, age or season.
Bushbuck (Tragelaphus scriptus) often deposit faeces at specific localised defecation sites (LDS). We tested whether LDS have a function in the context of parasite avoidance. In a population of bushbuck in Queen Elizabeth National Park, Uganda, seven radio-collared individuals were observed. We recorded feeding behaviour inside and outside LDS. Furthermore, pasture contamination with gastro-intestinal tract parasites inside and outside LDS was examined. There were significant differences between the expected and the observed feeding rates inside LDS, but, contrary to our prediction, the bushbuck increased their feeding rate inside LDS. There was no significant difference in the parasite contamination of pastures inside and outside LDS. We discuss the hypothesis that LDS mainly serve a social function in bushbuck communities, whereas parasite avoidance seems to play a minor or no role
Biochemical and physiological studies of Arabidopsis thaliana Diacylglycerol Kinase 7 (AtDGK7)
(2006)
A family of diacylglycerol kinases (DGK) phosphorylates the substrate diacylglycerol (DAG) to generate phosphatidic acid (PA) . Both molecules, DAG and PA, are involved in signal transduction pathways. In the model plant Arabidopsis thaliana, seven candidate genes (named AtDGK1 to AtDGK7) code for putative DGK isoforms. Here I report the molecular cloning and characterization of AtDGK7. Biochemical, molecular and physiological experiments of AtDGK7 and their corresponding enzyme are analyzed. Information from Genevestigator says that AtDGK7 gene is expressed in seedlings and adult Arabidopsis plants, especially in flowers. The AtDGK7 gene encodes the smallest functional DGK predicted in higher plants; but also, has an alternative coding sequence containing an extended AtDGK7 open reading frame, confirmed by PCR and submitted to the GenBank database (under the accession number DQ350135). The new cDNA has an extension of 439 nucleotides coding for 118 additional amino acids The former AtDGK7 enzyme has a predicted molecular mass of ~41 kDa and its activity is affected by pH and detergents. The DGK inhibitor R59022 also affects AtDGK7 activity, although at higher concentrations (i.e. IC50 ~380 µM). The AtDGK7 enzyme also shows a Michaelis-Menten type saturation curve for 1,2-DOG. Calculated Km and Vmax were 36 µM 1,2-DOG and 0.18 pmol PA min-1 mg of protein-1, respectively, under the assay conditions. Former protein AtDGK7 are able to phosphorylate different DAG analogs that are typically found in plants. The new deduced AtDGK7 protein harbors the catalytic DGKc and accessory domains DGKa, instead the truncated one as the former AtDGK7 protein (Gomez-Merino et al., 2005).
Overriding plate thinning in subduction zones : localized convection induced by slab dehydration
(2006)
In subduction zones, many observations indicate that the backarc thermal state is particularly hot and that the upper lithosphere is thin, even if no recent extension episode has occurred. This might result from free thermal convection favored by low viscosities in the hydrated mantle wedge. We perform 2-D numerical experiments of the convective mantle wedge interaction with both the downgoing slab and the overriding plate to test this hypothesis, explore its physical mechanism, and assess its dependencies on some relevant rock properties. Water transfers across the subducting plate and the mantle wedge are explicitly modeled by including in the calculation realistic hydration/ dehydration reaction boundaries for a water-saturated mantle and oceanic crust. The rheology is non-Newtonian and temperature-, pressure-, and water content-dependent. For low strength reduction associated to water content, the upper plate is locally thinned by an enhanced corner flow. For larger strength reductions, small convection cells rapidly thin the upper plate ( in less than 15 Myr) over the area in the overriding lithosphere hydrated by slab-derived water fluxes. As a result, the thinned region location depends on the subducting plate thermal state, and it increases with high convergence rates and low subduction dip angles. Other simulations are performed to test the sole effect of hydrous rock weakening on the upper plate/mantle convective interaction. They show that the thinning process is not influenced by the corner flow, but develops at the favor of a decoupling level induced by the formation of hydroxylated minerals inside the hydrated lithosphere. The erosion mechanism identified in these simulations allows us to explain the characteristic duration of erosion as a function of the hydrous strength reduction. We find that the presence of amphibole in the upper lithosphere in significant proportions is required down to a temperature of about 980 degrees C, corresponding to an initial depth of similar to 70 km, to strongly decrease the strength of the base of the lithosphere and trigger a rapid erosion (< 15 Myr).
In two experiments, many annotators marked antecedents for discourse deixis as unconstrained regions of text. The experiments show that annotators do converge on the identity of these text regions, though much of what they do can be captured by a simple model. Demonstrative pronouns are more likely than definite descriptions to be marked with discourse antecedents. We suggest that our methodology is suitable for the systematic study of discourse deixis.
Recurrence plot analyses suggest a novel reference system involved in newborn spontaneous movements
(2006)
The movements of newborns have been thoroughly studied in terms of reflexes, muscle synergies, leg coordination, and target-directed arm/hand movements. Since these approaches have concentrated mainly on separate accomplishments, there has remained a clear need for more integrated investigations. Here, we report an inquiry in which we explicitly concentrated on taking such a perspective and, additionally, were guided by the methodological concept of home base behavior, which Ilan Golard developed for studies of exploratory behavior in animals. Methods from nonlinear dynamics, such as symbolic dynamics and recurrence plot analyses of kinematic data received from audiovisual newborn recordings, yielded new insights into the spatial and temporal organization of limb movements. In the framework of home base behavior, our approach uncovered a novel reference system of spontaneous newborn movements.
Nonaqueous synthesis of metal oxide nanoparticles and their assembly into mesoporous materials
(2006)
This thesis mainly consist of two parts, the synthesis of several kinds of technologically interesting crystalline metal oxide nanoparticles via nonaqueous sol-gel process and the formation of mesoporous metal oxides using some of these nanoparticles as building blocks via evaporation induced self-assembly (EISA) technique. In the first part, the experimental procedures and characterization results of successful syntheses of crystalline tin oxide and tin doped indium oxide (ITO) nanoparticles are reported. SnO2 nanoparticles exhibit monodisperse particle size (3.5 nm in average), high crystallinity and particularly high dispersibility in THF, which enable them to become the ideal particulate precursor for the formation of mesoporous SnO2. ITO nanoparticles possess uniform particle morphology, narrow particle size distribution (5-10 nm), high crystallinity as well as high electrical conductivity. The synthesis approaches and characterization of various mesoporous metal oxides, including TiO2, SnO2, mixture of CeO2 and TiO2, mixture of BaTiO3 and SnO2, are reported in the second part of this thesis. Mesoporous TiO2 and SnO2 are presented as highlights of this part. Mesoporous TiO2 was produced in the forms of both films and bulk material. In the case of mesoporous SnO2, the study was focused on the high order of the porous structure. All these mesoporous metal oxides show high crystallinity, high surface area and rather monodisperse pore sizes, which demonstrate the validity of EISA process and the usage of preformed crystalline nanoparticles as nanobuilding blocks (NBBs) to produce mesoporous metal oxides.
Reliable information on small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) is rare and costly for financial intermediaries. Therefore relationship banking is often considered as the appropriate lending technique. In this paper we offer a theoretical model to analyze relationship banking and the pricing behavior of banks in a Bertrand competition framework with monitoring costs. We show that the lack of reliable information leads to comparable high interest rates even if a long-term relationship between borrower and bank exists. The paper offers a theoretical explanation why SMEs often are faced with borrowing constraints.
A successful assignment for the fundamental bands observed in the experimental IR spectra of mn-12S(2)O(2) and fn-12S(2)O(2) dithiacrown ethers was achieved by the aid of the density functional theory (DFT) based quantum mechanical calculations carried out at the 133LYP/6-31G(d) and B3LYP/6-31 + G(d) level of theory. Two different scaling approaches, '(i) scaled quantum mechanics force field (SQM FF) methodology', and (ii) the 'scaling frequencies with dual empirical scale factors', were used in order to fit the calculated harmonic frequencies to the experimental ones. Potential energy distribution (PED) calculations were carried out to define the internal coordinate contributions to each normal mode and to define the corresponding normal modes of the molecules. The effects of the conformational differences onto the IR active normal modes of the two isomeric molecules and their corresponding experimental frequencies were discussed in the light of the calculated spectral data.
An approach is presented for coupled chaotic systems with weak coherent motion, from which we estimate the upper bound value for the absolute phase difference in phase synchronous states. This approach shows that synchronicity in phase implies synchronicity in the time of events, a characteristic explored to derive an equation to detect phase synchronization, based on the absolute difference between the time of these events. We demonstrate the potential use of this approach for the phase coherent and the funnel attractor of the Rossler system, as well as for the spiking/bursting Rulkov map.
We show many versatile phase synchronous configurations that emerge in an array of coupled chaotic elements due to the presence of a periodic stimulus. Then, we explain the relevance of these configurations to the understanding of how information about such a. stimulus is transmitted from one side to the other in this array. The stimulus actively creates the ways to be transmitted, by making the chaotic elements to phase synchronize
Correlation between burnout syndrome and psychological and psychosomatic symptoms among teachers
(2006)
Objectives: Psychosomatic disorders and symptoms that correlate with the so-called burnout syndrome turned out to be the main cause of increasing rates of premature retirement of school teachers. The aim of this study was to evaluate the relation between occupational burden and psychological strain of teachers who are still in work. Methods: A sample of 408 teachers at ten grammar schools (am: High school; German: Gymnasium) in south-western Germany was evaluated. To determine the styles of coping with occupational burden we used the measure of coping capacity questionnaire (MECCA). To analyse the psychopathological and psychosomatic symptom load we applied SCL 90 R questionnaire. Results: According to the MECCA questionnaire, 32.5% of the sample suffered from burnout (type B), 17.7% suffered severe strain (type A), 35.9% showed an unambitious (type S) and 13.8% showed a healthy-ambitious coping style (type G). Burnout was significantly higher among women, divorced teachers and teachers working part-time. As part of the MECCA, teachers were asked to rate what they regarded as the strongest factor resulting in occupational burden. Teachers indicated that, besides high numbers of pupils in one class, they regarded destructive and aggressive behaviour of pupils as the primary stress factor. According to the SCL 90 R, 20% of the sample showed a severe degree (defined as > 70 points in the SCL90R GSI) of psychological and psychosomatic symptoms. MECCA type B (burnout) correlated significantly with high psychological and psychosomatic symptom load according to the SCL90R. Conclusions: In school teachers, burnout syndrome, a construct that derived from occupational psychology and occupational medicine, is significantly correlated with psychological and psychosomatic symptoms. Teachers rate destructive and aggressive behaviour of pupils as the primary stress factor.
The photosensitive microvilli of Drosophila photoreceptors R1-R6 are not aligned in parallel over the entire length of the visual cells. In the distal half of each cell, the microvilli are slightly tilted toward one side and, in the proximal half, extremely toward the opposite side. This phenomenon, termed rhabdomere twisting, has been known for several decades, but the developmental and cell biological basis of rhabdomere twisting has not been studied so far. We show that rhabdomere twisting is also manifested as molecular polarization of the visual cell, because phosphotyrosine- containing proteins are selectively partitioned to different sides of the rhabdomere stalk in the distal. and proximal sections of each R1-R6 photoreceptor. Both the asymmetrical segregation of phosphotyrosine proteins and the tilting of the microvilli occur shortly before eclosion of the flies, when eye development in all other aspects is considered to be essentially complete. Establishment of rhabdomere twisting occurs in a light-independent manner, because phosphotyrosine staining is unchanged in dark-reared wild-type flies and in mutants with defects in the phototransduction cascade, ninaE(17) and norpA(P24). We conclude that antiphosphotyrosine immunofluorescence can be used as a light microscopic probe for the analysis of rhabdomere twisting and that microvilli tilting represents a type of planar cell polarity that is established by an active process in the last phase of photoreceptor morphogenesis, just prior to eclosion of the flies.
Generalized eigenvectors for resonances in the Friedrichs model and their associated Gamov vectors
(2006)
A Gelfand triplet for the Hamiltonian H of the Priedrichs model on R with multiplicity space K, dim K < infinity, is constructed such that exactly the resonances (poles of the inverse of the Livsic-matrix) are (generalized) eigenvalues of H. The corresponding eigen(anti)linear forms are calculated explicitly. Using the wave matrices for the wave (Moller) operators the corresponding eigen(anti)linear forms on the Schwartz space S for the unperturbed Hamiltonian Ho are also calculated. It turns out that they are of pure Dirac type and can be characterized by their corresponding Gamov vector lambda -> k/(zeta(0)-lambda)(-1), zeta(0) resonance, k epsilon K, which is uniquely determined by restriction of S to S boolean AND H-+(2), where H-+(2) denotes the Hardy space of the upper half-plane. Simultaneously this restriction yields a truncation of the generalized evolution to the well-known decay semigroup for t >= 0 of the Toeplitz type on H-+(2). That is: Exactly those pre-Gamov vectors a lambda -> k/(zeta-lambda)(-1), ( from the lower half-plane, k epsilon K., have an extension to a generalized eigenvector of H if zeta is a resonance and if k is from that subspace of K which is uniquely determined by its corresponding Dirac type antilinear form
Background: Racing drivers require multifaceted cognitive and physical abilities in a multitasking situation. A knowledge of their physical capacities may help to improve fitness and performance. Objective: To compare reaction time, stability performance capacity, and strength performance capacity of elite racing drivers with those of age-matched, physically active controls. Methods: Eight elite racing drivers and 10 physically active controls matched for age and weight were tested in a reaction and determination test requiring upper and lower extremity responses to visual and audio cues. Further tests comprised evaluation of one-leg postural stability on a two-dimensional moveable platform, measures of maximum strength performance capacity of the extensors of the leg on a leg press, and a test of force capacity of the arms in a sitting position at a steering wheel. An additional arm endurance test consisted of isometric work at the steering wheel at + 30 degrees and -30 degrees where an eccentric threshold load of 30 N.m was applied. Subjects had to hold the end positions above this threshold until exhaustion. Univariate one way analysis of variance (alpha = 0.05) including a Bonferroni adjustment was used to detect group differences between the drivers and controls. Results: The reaction time of the racing drivers was significantly faster than the controls ( p = 0.004). The following motor reaction time and reaction times in the multiple determination test did not differ between the groups. No significant differences (p> 0.05) were found for postural stability, leg extensor strength, or arm strength and endurance. Conclusions: Racing drivers have faster reaction times than age-matched physically active controls. Further development of motor sport-specific test protocols is suggested. According to the requirements of motor racing, strength and sensorimotor performance capacity can potentially be improved.
In the favoured core-accretion model of formation of planetary systems, solid planetesimals accumulate to build up planetary cores, which then accrete nebular gas if they are sufficiently massive. Around M-dwarf stars ( the most common stars in our Galaxy), this model favours the formation of Earth-mass (M+) to Neptune-mass planets with orbital radii of 1 to 10 astronomical units (AU), which is consistent with the small number of gas giant planets known to orbit M-dwarf host stars(1-4). More than 170 extrasolar planets have been discovered with a wide range of masses and orbital periods, but planets of Neptune's mass or less have not hitherto been detected at separations of more than 0.15 AU from normal stars. Here we report the discovery of a 5.5(-2.7)(+5.5)M(+) planetary companion at a separation of 2.6(- 0.6)(+1.5) AU from a 0.22(-0.11)(+0.21)M(.) M-dwarf star, where M-. refers to a solar mass. (We propose to name it OGLE- 2005-BLG-390Lb, indicating a planetary mass companion to the lens star of the microlensing event.) The mass is lower than that of GJ876d (ref. 5), although the error bars overlap. Our detection suggests that such cool, sub-Neptune-mass planets may be more common than gas giant planets, as predicted by the core accretion theory.
The first step in the estimation of probabilistic seismic hazard in a region commonly consists of the definition and characterization of the relevant seismic sources. Because in low-seismicity regions seismicity is often rather diffuse and faults are difficult to identify, large areal source zones are mostly used. The corresponding hypothesis is that seismicity is uniformly distributed inside each areal seismic source zone. In this study, the impact of this hypothesis on the probabilistic hazard estimation is quantified through the generation of synthetic spatial seismicity distributions. Fractal seismicity distributions are generated inside a given source zone and probabilistic hazard is computed for a set of sites located inside this zone. In our study, the impact of the spatial seismicity distribution is defined as the deviation from the hazard value obtained for a spatially uniform seismicity distribution. From the generation of a large number of synthetic distributions, the correlation between the fractal dimension D and the impact is derived. The results show that the assumption of spatially uniform seismicity tends to bias the hazard to higher values. The correlation can be used to determine the systematic biases and uncertainties for hazard estimations in real cases, where the fractal dimension has been determined. We apply the technique in Germany (Cologne area) and in France (Alps).
In low-seismicity regions, such as France or Germany, the estimation of probabilistic seismic hazard must cope with the difficult identification of active faults and with the low amount of seismic data available. Since the probabilistic hazard method was initiated, most studies assume a Poissonian occurrence of earthquakes. Here we propose a method that enables the inclusion of time and space dependences between earthquakes into the probabilistic estimation of hazard. Combining the seismicity model Epidemic Type Aftershocks-Sequence (ETAS) with a Monte Carlo technique, aftershocks are naturally accounted for in the hazard determination. The method is applied to the Pyrenees region in Southern France. The impact on hazard of declustering and of the usual assumption that earthquakes occur according to a Poisson process is quantified, showing that aftershocks contribute on average less than 5 per cent to the probabilistic hazard, with an upper bound around 18 per cent
Quantum dots (QDs) are common as luminescing markers for imaging in biological applications because their optical properties seem to be inert against their surrounding solvent. This, together with broad and strong absorption bands and intense, sharp tuneable luminescence bands, makes them interesting candidates for methods utilizing Förster Resonance Energy Transfer (FRET), e. g. for sensitive homogeneous fluoroimmunoassays (FIA). In this work we demonstrate energy transfer from Eu<SUP>3+</SUP>-trisbipyridin (Eu-TBP) donors to CdSe-ZnS-QD acceptors in solutions with and without serum. The QDs are commercially available CdSe-ZnS core-shell particles emitting at 655 nm (QD655). The FRET system was achieved by the binding of the streptavidin conjugated donors with the biotin conjugated acceptors. After excitation of Eu-TBP and as result of the energy transfer, the luminescence of the QD655 acceptors also showed lengthened decay times like the donors. The energy transfer efficiency, as calculated from the decay times of the bound and the unbound components, amounted to 37%. The Förster-radius, estimated from the absorption and emission bands, was ca. 77 Å. The effective binding ratio, which not only depends on the ratio of binding pairs but also on unspecific binding, was obtained from the donor emission dependent on the concentration. As serum promotes unspecific binding, the overall FRET efficiency of the assay was reduced. We conclude that QDs are good substitutes for acceptors in FRET if combined with slow decay donors like Europium. The investigation of the influence of the serum provides guidance towards improving binding properties of QD assays.
The concept of complementarity, originally defined for non-commuting observables of quantum systems with states of non-vanishing dispersion, is extended to classical dynamical systems with a partitioned phase space. Interpreting partitions in terms of ensembles of epistemic states (symbols) with corresponding classical observables, it is shown that such observables are complementary to each other with respect to particular partitions unless those partitions are generating. This explains why symbolic descriptions based on an ad hoc partition of an underlying phase space description should generally be expected to be incompatible. Related approaches with different background and different objectives are discussed
Because of its high reaction rate and specificity, the enzyme superoxide dismutase (SOD) offers great potential for the sensitive quantification of superoxide radicals in electrochemical biosensors. In this work, monomeric mutants of human Cu,Zn-SOD were engineered to contain one or two additional cysteine residues, which could be used to bind the protein to gold surfaces, thus making the use of promotor molecules unnecessary. Six mutants were successfully designed, expressed, and purified. All mutants bound directly to unmodified gold surfaces via the sulfur of the cysteine residues and showed a quasireversible, direct electron transfer to the electrode. Thermodynamic and kinetic parameters of the electron transfer were characterized and showed only slight variations between the individual mutants. For one of the mutants, the interaction with the superoxide radical was studied in more detail. For both partial reactions of the dismutation, an interaction between protein and radical could be shown. In an amperometric biosensorial approach, the SOD-mutant electrode was successfully applied for the detection of superoxide radicals. In the oxidation region, the electrode surpassed the sensitivity of the commonly used cytochrome c electrodes by similar to 1 order of magnitude while not being limited by interferences, but the electrode did not fully reach the sensitivity of dimeric Cu,Zn-SOD immobilized on MPA-modified gold
In this work, ion mobility (IM) spectra of more than 50 aromatic compounds were recorded with a laser-based IM spectrometer at atmospheric pressure. IM spectra of PAH in the laser desorption experiment show a high complexity resulting from the occurrence of monomeric, dimeric, and oligomeric cluster ions. The mobilities of all compounds were determined in helium as drift gas. This allows the calculation of the diffusion cross sections (Omega(calc)) on the basis of the exact hard sphere scattering model and their comparison with the experimentally determined diffusion cross sections (Omega(exp)). Extended Omega(exp)/Omega(calc) and Omega(exp/)mass correlations were performed in order to gain insight into conformational properties of cationic alkyl benzenes and internal rotation of phenyl rings in aromatic ions. This is demonstrated with some examples, such as the evaluation of the dihedral angle of the ions of 9,10- diphenylanthracene, o- and m-terphenyl, and 1,2,3- and 1,3,5-triphenylbenzene. Furthermore, sandwich and T-structures of dimeric PAH cations are discussed. The analysis was extended to oligomeric ions with up to nine monomer units. Experimental evidence is presented suggesting the formation of pi-stacks with a transition toward modified pi-stacks with increasing cluster size. The distance between monomeric units in dimeric and oligomeric ions was obtained
1. The in situ abundance, biomass and mean cell volume of Actinophrys sol (Sarcodina: Heliozoa), the top predator in an extremely acidic German mining lake (Lake 111; pH 2.65), were determined over three consecutive years (spring to autumn, 2001-03). 2. Actinophrys sol exhibited pronounced temporal and vertical patterns in abundance, biomass and mean cell volume. Increasing from very low spring densities, maxima in abundance and biomass were observed in late June/early July and September. The highest mean abundance recorded during the study was 7 x 10(3) Heliozoa L-1. Heliozoan abundance and biomass were higher in the epilimnion than in the hypolimnion. Actinophrys sol cells from this acidic lake were smaller than individuals of the same species found in other aquatic systems. 3. We determined the growth rate of A. sol using all potential prey items available in, and isolated and cultured from, Lake 111. Prey items included: single-celled and filamentous bacteria of unknown taxonomic affinity, the mixotrophic flagellates Chlamydomonas acidophila and Ochromonas sp., the ciliate Oxytricha sp. and the rotifers Elosa worallii and Cephalodella hoodi. Actinophrys sol fed over a wide-size spectrum from bacteria to metazoans. Positive growth was not supported by all naturally available prey. Actinophrys sol neither increased in cell number (k) nor biomass (k(b)) when starved, with low concentrations of single-celled bacteria or with the alga Ochromonas sp. Positive growth was achieved with single- celled bacteria (k = 0.22 +/- 0.02 d(-1); k(b) = -0.06 +/- 0.02 d(-1)) and filamentous bacteria (k = 0.52 +/- < 0.01 d(- 1); k(b) = 0.66 d(-1)) at concentrations greater than observed in situ, and the alga C. acidophila (up to k = 0.43 +/- 0.03 d(-1); k(b) = 0.44 +/- 0.04 d(-1)), the ciliate Oxytricha sp. (k = 0.34 +/- 0.01 d(-1)) and in mixed cultures containing rotifers and C. acidophila (k = 0.23 +/- 0.02-0.32 +/- 0.02 d(-1); maximum k(b) = 0.42 +/- 0.05 d(-1)). The individual- and biomass-based growth of A. sol was highest when filamentous bacteria were provided. 4. Existing quantitative carbon flux models for the Lake 111 food web can be updated in light of our results. Actinophrys sol are omnivorous predators supported by a mixed diet of filamentous bacteria and C. acidophila in the epilimnion. Heliozoa are important components in the planktonic food webs of 'extreme' environments
Verbal or visual? : How information is distributed across speech and gesture in spatial dialog
(2006)
In spatial dialog like in direction giving humans make frequent use of speechaccompanying gestures. Some gestures convey largely the same information as speech while others complement speech. This paper reports a study on how speakers distribute meaning across speech and gesture, and depending on what factors. Utterance meaning and the wider dialog context were tested by statistically analyzing a corpus of direction-giving dialogs. Problems of speech production (as indicated by discourse markers and disfluencies), the communicative goals, and the information status were found to be influential, while feedback signals by the addressee do not have any influence.
We present ground-based and Hubble Space Telescope optical observations of the X-ray flash ( XRF) 020903, covering 300 days. The afterglow showed a very rapid rise in the first day, followed by a relatively slow decay in the next few days. There was a clear bump in the light curve after similar to 25 days, accompanied by a drastic change in the spectral energy distribution. The light curve and the spectral energy distribution are naturally interpreted as describing the emergence and subsequent decay of a supernova ( SN), similar to SN 1998bw. At peak luminosity, the SN is estimated to be 0.8 +/- 0.1 mag fainter than SN 1998bw. This argues in favor of the existence of a SN associated with this XRF. A spectrum obtained 35 days after the burst shows emission lines from the host galaxy. We use this spectrum to put an upper limit on the oxygen abundance of the host at [O/H] <= 0.6 dex. We also discuss a possible trend between the softness of several bursts and the early behavior of the optical afterglow, in the sense that XRFs and X-ray-rich gamma- ray bursts ( GRBs) seem to have a plateau phase or even a rising light curve. This can be naturally explained in models in which XRFs are similar to GRBs but are seen off the jet axis.
This paper presents a study of PH, a woman with aphasia, who shows a robust impairment in naming pictures of non-living relative to living things. Un-timed investigations of feature knowledge show similar performance across categories suggesting that, as in previous studies, the category effect may be arising at a post-semantic level. However, her performance on a timed feature verification task was slower for non-living than living things (relative to matched controls), in line with her naming. This suggests that the source of PH's category deficit is in fact semantic and that thorough investigation is necessary before claiming a post-semantic category specific deficit in word production. Finally, the results of an intervention study, which apparently eliminated the effect of semantic category on PH's naming, are reported.
We present a new analysis of illocutionary forces in dialogue. We analyze them as complex conversational moves involving two dimensions: what Speaker commits herself to and what she calls on Addressee to perform. We start from the analysis of speech acts such as confirmation requests or whimperatives, and extend the analysis to seemingly simple speech acts, such as statements and queries. Then, we show how to integrate our proposal in the framework of the Grammar for Conversation (Ginzburg, to app.), which is adequate for modelling agents' information states and how they get updated.
The question as to whether state-selective population of molecular vibrational levels by shaped infrared laser pulses is possible in a condensed phase environment is of central importance for such diverse fields as time-resolved spectroscopy, quantum computing, or "vibrationally mediated chemistry." This question is addressed here for a model system, representing carbon monoxide adsorbed on a Cu(100) surface. Three of the six vibrational modes are considered explicitly, namely, the CO stretch vibration, the CO-surface vibration, and a frustrated translation. Optimized infrared pulses for state-selective excitation of "bright" and "dark" vibrational levels are designed by optimal control theory in the framework of a Markovian open-system density matrix approach, with energy flow to substrate electrons and phonons, phase relaxation, and finite temperature accounted for. The pulses are analyzed by their Husimi "quasiprobability" distribution in time-energy space.
In this work approaches for new detection system development for an Analytical Ultracentrifuge (AUC) were explored. Unlike its counterpart in chromatography fractionation techniques, the use of a Multidetection system for AUC has not yet been implemented to full extent despite its potential benefit. In this study we tried to couple existing fundamental spectroscopic and scattering techniques that are used in day to day science as tool for extracting analyte information. Trials were performed for adapting Raman, Light scattering and UV/Vis (with possibility to work with the whole range of wavelengths) to AUC. Conclusions were drawn for Raman and Light scattering to be a possible detection system for AUC, while the development for a fast fiber optics based multiwavelength detector was completed. The multiwavelength detector demonstrated the capability of data generation matching the literature and reference measurement data and faster data collection than that of the commercial instrument. It became obvious that with the generation of data in 3-D space in the UV/Vis detection system, the user can select the wavelength for the evaluation of experimental results as the data set contains the whole range of information from UV/Vis wavelength. The detector showed the data generation with much faster speed unlike the commercial instruments. The advantage of fast data generation was exemplified with the evaluation of data for a mixture of three colloids. These data were in conformity with measurement results from normal radial experiments and without significant diffusion broadening. Thus conclusions were drawn that with our designed Multiwavelength detector, meaningful data in 3-D space can be collected with much faster speed of data generation.
The occurrence of two individuals of Zu cristatus at 2 m depth in coastal waters of the Gulf of Castellamare (Tyrrhenian Sea, Italy) together with records of this rare pan-Oceanic mesopelagic species is reported. Analyses of two mitochondrial genes (12 s and 16 s; 936 bp) revealed a 2.6% sequence divergence between Mediterranean and Pacific (Japanese) samples of the species.
Forum: EU-Diplomatie im Jahre 2020
Sucrose synthase (Susy) is a key enzyme of sucrose metabolism, catalysing the reversible conversion of sucrose and UDP to UDP-glucose and fructose. Therefore, its activity, localization and function have been studied in various plant species. It has been shown that Susy can play a role in supplying energy in companion cells for phloem loading (Fu and Park, 1995), provides substrates for starch synthesis (Zrenner et al., 1995), and supplies UDP-glucose for cell wall synthesis (Haigler et al., 2001). Analysis of the Arabidopsis genome identifies six Susy isoforms. The expression of these isoforms was investigated using promoter-reporter gene constructs (GUS) and real time RT-PCR. Although these isoforms are closely related at the protein level they have radically different spatial and temporal patterns of expression in the plant with no two isoforms showing the same distribution. More than one isoform is expressed in all organs examined. Some of them have high but specific expression in particular organs or developmental stages whilst others are constantly expressed throughout the whole plant and across various stages of development. The in planta function of the six Susy isoforms were explored through analysis of T-DNA insertion mutants and RNAi lines. Plants without the expression of individual isoforms show no differences in growth and development, and are not significantly different from wild type plants in soluble sugars, starch and cellulose contents under all growth conditions investigated. Analysis of T-DNA insertion mutant lacking Sus3 isoform that was exclusively expressed in stomata cells only had a minor influence on guard cell osmoregulation and/or bioenergetics. Although none of the sucrose synthases appear to be essential for normal growth under our standard growth conditions, they may be necessary for growth under stress conditions. Different isoforms of sucrose synthase respond differently to various abiotic stresses. It has been shown that oxygen deprivation up regulates Sus1 and Sus4 and increases total Susy activity. However, the analysis of the plants with reduced expression of both Sus1 and Sus4 revealed no obvious effects on plant performance under oxygen deprivation. Low temperature up regulates Sus1 expression but the loss of this isoform has no effect on the freezing tolerance of non acclimated and cold acclimated plants. These data provide a comprehensive overview of the expression of this gene family which supports some of the previously reported roles for Susy and indicates the involvement of specific isoforms in metabolism and/or signalling.
Finding non-Gaussian components of high-dimensional data is an important preprocessing step for efficient information processing. This article proposes a new linear method to identify the '' non-Gaussian subspace '' within a very general semi-parametric framework. Our proposed method, called NGCA (non-Gaussian component analysis), is based on a linear operator which, to any arbitrary nonlinear (smooth) function, associates a vector belonging to the low dimensional non-Gaussian target subspace, up to an estimation error. By applying this operator to a family of different nonlinear functions, one obtains a family of different vectors lying in a vicinity of the target space. As a final step, the target space itself is estimated by applying PCA to this family of vectors. We show that this procedure is consistent in the sense that the estimaton error tends to zero at a parametric rate, uniformly over the family, Numerical examples demonstrate the usefulness of our method
The Berlin Brain-Computer Interface (BBCI) project develops a noninvasive BCI system whose key features are 1) the use of well-established motor competences as control paradigms, 2) high-dimensional features from 128-channel electroencephalogram (EEG), and 3) advanced machine learning techniques. As reported earlier, our experiments demonstrate that very high information transfer rates can be achieved using the readiness potential (RP) when predicting the laterality of upcoming left-versus right-hand movements in healthy subjects. A more recent study showed that the RP similarily accompanies phantom movements in arm amputees, but the signal strength decreases with longer loss of the limb. In a complementary approach, oscillatory features are used to discriminate imagined movements (left hand versus right hand versus foot). In a recent feedback study with six healthy subjects with no or very little experience with BCI control, three subjects achieved an information transfer rate above 35 bits per minute (bpm), and further two subjects above 24 and 15 bpm, while one subject could not achieve any BCI control. These results are encouraging for an EEG-based BCI system in untrained subjects that is independent of peripheral nervous system activity and does not rely on evoked potentials even when compared to results with very well-trained subjects operating other BCI systems
A brain-computer interface (BCI) is a system that allows its users to control external devices with brain activity. Although the proof-of-concept was given decades ago, the reliable translation of user intent into device control commands is still a major challenge. Success requires the effective interaction of two adaptive controllers: the user's brain, which produces brain activity that encodes intent, and the BCI system, which translates that activity into device control commands. In order to facilitate this interaction, many laboratories are exploring a variety of signal analysis techniques to improve the adaptation of the BCI system to the user. In the literature, many machine learning and pattern classification algorithms have been reported to give impressive results when applied to BCI data in offline analyses. However, it is more difficult to evaluate their relative value for actual online use. BCI data competitions have been organized to provide objective formal evaluations of alternative methods. Prompted by the great interest in the first two BCI Competitions, we organized the third BCI Competition to address several of the most difficult and important analysis problems in BCI research. The paper describes the data sets that were provided to the competitors and gives an overview of the results.
Tight junctions seal intercellular clefts via membrane-related strands, hence, maintaining important organ functions. We investigated the self-association of strand-forming transmembrane tight junction proteins. The regulatory tight junction protein occludin was differently tagged and cotransfected in eucaryotic cells. These occludins colocalized within the plasma membrane of the same cell, coprecipitated and exhibited fluorescence resonance energy transfer. Differently tagged strand-forming claudin-5 also colocalized in the plasma membrane of the same cell and showed fluorescence resonance energy transfer. This demonstrates self-association in intact cells both of occludin and claudin-5 in one plasma membrane. In search of dimerizing regions of occludin, dimerization of its cytosolic C-terminal coiled-coil domain was identified. In claudin-5, the second extracellular loop was detected as a dimer. Since the transmembrane junctional adhesion molecule also is known to dimerize, the assumption that homodimerization of transmembrane tight junction proteins may serve as a common structural feature in tight junction assembly is supported
Relationships of annelid subtaxa are controversially discussed and additional markers are necessarily needed to get further insights into their evolution. Due to their high content of information, mitochondrial genomes have been proven very useful in phylogenetic analyses. Whereas many complete mitochondrial genomes of arthropods are available, lophotrochozoan taxa are only scarcely represented and this is especially true for annelids. Here we present the complete mitochondrial genome of the orbiniid polychaete Orbinia latreillii. The circular genome is 15,558 bp in size and contains the same 37 genes as found in most other metazoans. As in the case for all studied annelids all genes are transcribed from the same strand. Compared with the known data from other annelids at least five gene translocations must be hypothesized for O. latreillii. A comparison of the available data shows that gene translocations within Annelida seem to be less frequent than in molluscs, but more frequent as previously assumed. Phylogenetic analyses of mitochondrial DNA sequence data and amino acid data support an inclusion Of Sipuncula within Annelida and a closer relationship to orbiniids is recovered for this taxon.
G protein-coupled receptor (GPCR) genes are large gene families in every animal, sometimes making up to 1-2% of the animal's genome. Of all insect GPCRs, the neurohormone (neuropeptide, protein hormone, biogenic amine) GPCRs are especially important, because they, together with their ligands, occupy a high hierarchic position in the physiology of insects and steer crucial processes such as development, reproduction, and behavior. In this paper, we give a review of our current knowledge on Drosophila melanogaster GPCRs and use this information to annotate the neurohormone GPCR genes present in the recently sequenced genome from the honey bee Apis mellifera. We found 35 neuropeptide receptor genes in the honey bee (44 in Drosophila) and two genes, coding for leucine-rich repeats-containing protein hormone GPCRs (4 in Drosophila). In addition, the honey bee has 19 biogenic amine receptor genes (21 in Drosophila). The larger numbers of neurohormone receptors in Drosophila are probably due to gene duplications that occurred during recent evolution of the fly. Our analyses also yielded the likely ligands for 40 of the 56 honey bee neurohormone GPCRs identified in this study. In addition, we made some interesting observations on neurohormone GPCR evolution and the evolution and co-evolution of their ligands. For neuropeptide and protein hormone GPCRs, there appears to be a general co-evolution between receptors and their ligands. This is in contrast to biogenic amine GPCRs, where evolutionarily unrelated GPCRs often bind to the same biogenic amine, suggesting frequent ligand exchanges ("ligand hops") during GPCR evolution. (c) 2006 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
A casual look at regional unemployment rates reveals that there are vast differences, which cannot be explained by different institutional settings. Our paper attempts to trace these differences in the labor market performance back to the regions' specialization in products that are more or less advanced in their product cycle. The model we develop shows how individual profit and utility maximization endogenously yields higher employment levels in the beginning. In later phases, however, employment decreases in the presence of process innovation. Our model suggests that the only way to escape from this vicious circle is to specialize in products that are at the beginning of their "economic life". The model is based on an interaction of demand and supply side forces.
Preface
(2006)
Starting from an initial wiring of connections, we show that the synchronizability of a network can be significantly improved by evolving the graph along a time dependent connectivity matrix. We consider the case of connectivity matrices that commute at all times, and compare several approaches to engineer the corresponding commutative graphs. In particular, we show that synchronization in a dynamical network can be achieved even in the case in which each individual commutative graphs does not give rise to synchronized behavior
The vertical radar profiling (VRP) technique uses surface-to-borehole acquisition geometries comparable to vertical seismic profiling (VSP). Major differences between the two methods do arise due to the fundamentally differing nature of the velocity-depth gradients and transmitter/receiver directivities. Largely for this reason, VRP studies have so far essentially been limited to the reconstruction of velocity-depth profiles by inverting direct arrival times from single-offset VRP surveys. In this study, we investigate the potential to produce high-resolution subsurface reflection images from multi-offset VRP data. Two synthetic data sets are used to evaluate a processing strategy suitably adapted from VSP processing. Despite the fundamental differences between VRP and VSP data, we found that our processing approach is capable of reconstructing subsurface structures of comparable complexity to those routinely imaged by VSP data. Finally, we apply our processing flow to two multi-offset VRP data sets recorded at a well constrained hydrogeophysical test site in SW-Germany. The inferred VRP images are compared with high-quality surface georadar reflection images and lithological logs available at the borehole locations. We find that the VRP images are in good agreement with the surface georadar data and reliably detect the major lithological boundaries. Due to the significantly shorter ray-paths, the depth penetration of the VRP data is, however, considerably higher than that of the surface georadar data. VRP reflection images thus provide an effective means for the depth-calibration and extension of conventional surface georadar data in the vicinity of boreholes.
The objective is to compare the time scale of microbial degradation of the herbicide Isoproturon at the end of earthworm burrows with the time scale of microbial degradation in the surrounding soil matrix. To this end, we developed a method which allows the observation of microbial degradation on Isoproturon in macropores under field conditions. Study area was the well-investigated Weiherbach catchment (Kraichgau, SW Germany). The topsoil of a 12 m(2) large plot parcel was removed, the parcel was covered with a tent and instrumented with TDR and temperature sensors at two depths. After preliminary investigations to optimize application and sampling techniques, the bottom of 55 earthworm burrows, located at a depth of 80-100cm, was inoculated with Isoproturon. Within an interval of 8 d, soil material from the bottom of 5-6 earthworm burrows was taken into the laboratory and analyzed for the Isoproturon concentration for investigation of the degradation kinetics. Furthermore, the degradation of Isoproturon in the soil matrix, that surrounded the macropores at the field plot, was observed in the laboratory. Microbial degradation of Isoproturon at the bottom of the earthworm burrows was with a DT-50-value of 15.6 d almost as fast as in the topsoil. In the soil matrix that closely surrounded the center of the earthworm burrows, no measurable degradation was observed within 30 d. The clearly slower degradation in the soil matrix may be likely explained by a lower microbial activity that was observed in the surrounding soil matrix. The results give evidence that deterministic modeling of the fate of pesticides once transported into heterogeneous subsoils by preferential flow requires an accuracy of a few centimeters in terms of predicting spatial locations: time scales of microbial degradation in the subsoil drop almost one order of magnitude, in case the herbicides dislocates from the bottom of an earthworm burrow a few centimeter into the surrounding soil matrix. If at all, predictions of such an accuracy can only be achieved at locations at sites where the soil hydraulic properties and the macropore system are known at a very high spatial resolution
Major earthquakes ( M > 8) have repeatedly ruptured the Nazca-South America plate interface of south-central Chile involving meter scale land-level changes. Earthquake recurrence intervals, however, extending beyond limited historical records are virtually unknown, but would provide crucial data on the tectonic behavior of forearcs. We analyzed the spatiotemporal pattern of Holocene earthquakes on Santa Maria Island (SMI; 37 degrees S), located 20 km off the Chilean coast and approximately 70 km east of the trench. SMI hosts a minimum of 21 uplifted beach berms, of which a subset were dated to calculate a mean uplift rate of 2.3 +/- 0.2 m/ky and a tilting rate of 0.022 +/- 0.002 degrees/ky. The inferred recurrence interval of strandline-forming earthquakes is similar to 180 years. Combining coseismic uplift and aseismic subsidence during an earthquake cycle, the net gain in strandline elevation in this environment is similar to 0.4 m per event
Aluminum-26 and beryllium-10 surface exposure dating on cut-and-fill river-terrace surfaces from the lower Sutlej Valley (northwest Himalaya) documents the close link between Indian Summer Monsoon (ISM) oscillations and intervals of enhanced fluvial incision. During the early Holocene ISM optimum, precipitation was enhanced and reached far into the internal parts of the orogen. The amplified sediment flux from these usually dry but glaciated areas caused alluviation of downstream valleys up to 120 m above present grade at ca. 9.9 k.y. B.P. Terrace formation (i.e., incision) in the coarse deposits occurred during century-long weak ISM phases that resulted in reduced moisture availability and most likely in lower sediment flux. Here, we suggest that the lower sediment flux during weak ISM phases allowed rivers to incise episodically into the alluvial fill
Iterated finite state sequential transducers are considered as language generating devices. The hierarchy induced by the size of the state alphabet is proved to collapse to the fourth level. The corresponding language families are related to the families of languages generated by Lindenmayer systems and Chomsky grammars. Finally, some results on deterministic and extended iterated finite state transducers are established.
We consider generating and accepting programmed grammars with bounded degree of non-regulation, that is, the maximum number of elements in success or in failure fields of the underlying grammar. In particular, it is shown that this measure can be restricted to two without loss of descriptional capacity, regardless of whether arbitrary derivations or left-most derivations are considered. Moreover, in some cases, precise characterizations of the linear bounded automaton problem in terms of programmed grammars are obtained. Thus, the results presented in this paper shed new light on some longstanding open problem in the theory of computational complexity.
We prove the existence of a class of local in time solutions, including static solutions, of the Einstein-Euler system. This result is the relativistic generalisation of a similar result for the Euler-Poisson system obtained by Gamblin [8]. As in his case the initial data of the density do not have compact support but fall off at infinity in an appropriate manner. An essential tool in our approach is the construction and use of weighted Sobolev spaces of fractional order. Moreover, these new spaces allow us to improve the regularity conditions for the solutions of evolution equations. The details of this construction, the properties of these spaces and results on elliptic and hyperbolic equations will be presented in a forthcoming article.
Since 2002, keywords like service-oriented engineering, service-oriented computing, and service-oriented architecture have been widely used in research, education, and enterprises. These and related terms are often misunderstood or used incorrectly. To correct these misunderstandings, a deeper knowledge of the concepts, the historical backgrounds, and an overview of service-oriented architectures is demanded and given in this paper.
The strongly peraluminous and P-rich, protolithionite and zinnwaldite leucogranites from Podlesi, western Krusne Hory Mts., Czech Republic, contain accessory zircon with extraordinary enrichment of several elements, which constitute trace elements in common zircon. Elements showing a not yet reported anomalous enrichment include P (up to 20.2 wt.% P2O5; equivalent to 0.60 apfu, formula calculated on the basis of 4 oxygen atoms), Bi (up to 9.0 wt.% Bi2O3; 0.086 apfu), Nb (up to 6.7 wt.% Nb2O5, 0.12 apfu), Sc (up to 3.45 wt.% Sc2O3; 0.10 apfu), U (up to 14.8 wt.% UO2; 0.12 apfu) and F (up to 3.81 wt.% F; 0.42 apfu). Strong enrichment of P preferentially involved the berlinite-type substitution (2 Si4+ double left right arrow P5+ + Al3+) implying that significant Al may enter the Si position in zircon. Incorporation of other exotic elements is primarily governed by the xenotime (Si4++Zr4+ double left right arrow P5++Y3+), pretulite (Sc3++P5+ double left right arrow Zr4++Si4+), brabantite-type (Ca2++(U, Th)(4+)+2P(5+) double left right arrow 2Zr(4+)+2Si(4+)), and ximengite-type (Bi3++P5+double left right arrow Zr4++Si4+) substitution reactions. One part of the anomalous zircons formed late-magmatically, from a strongly peraluminous, P-F-U-rich hydrous residual melt that gave rise to the zinnwaldite granite. Interaction with aggressive residual fluids and metamictization have further aided in element enrichment or depletion, particularly in altered parts of zircon contained in the protolithionite granite. Most of the zircon from F-rich greisens have a composition close to endmember ZrSiO4 and are chemically distinct from zircon in its granite parent. This discrepancy implies that at Podlesi, granitic zircon became unstable and completely dissolved during greisenization. Part of the mobilized elements was reprecipitated in newly grown, hydrothermal zircon.
The paper provides an introduction and survey of conservative discretization methods for Hamiltonian partial differential equations. The emphasis is on variational, symplectic and multi-symplectic methods. The derivation of methods as well as some of their fundamental geometric properties are discussed. Basic principles are illustrated by means of examples from wave and fluid dynamics
The velocity distribution of a granular gas is analyzed in terms of the Sonine polynomials expansion. We derive an analytical expression for the third Sonine coefficient a(3). In contrast to frequently used assumptions this coefficient is of the same order of magnitude as the second Sonine coefficient a(2). For small inelasticity the theoretical result is in good agreement with numerical simulations. The next-order Sonine coefficients a(4), a(5) and a(6) are determined numerically. While these coefficients are negligible for small dissipation, their magnitude grows rapidly with increasing inelasticity for 0 < epsilon less than or similar to 0.6. We conclude that this behavior of the Sonine coefficients manifests the breakdown of the Sonine polynomial expansion caused by the increasing impact of the overpopulated high-energy tail of the distribution function
The main claim of this paper is that the minimalist framework and optimality theory adopt more or less the same architecture of grammar: both assume that a generator defines a set S of potentially well-formed expressions that can be generated on the basis of a given input, and that there is an evaluator that selects the expressions from S that are actually grammatical in a given language L. The paper therefore proposes a model of grammar in which the strengths of the two frameworks are combined: more specifically, it is argued that the computational system of human language CHL from MP creates a set S of potentially well-formed expressions, and that these are subsequently evaluated in an optimality theoretic fashion.
Six Earth system models of intermediate complexity that are able to simulate interaction between atmosphere, ocean, and land surface, were forced with a scenario of land cover changes during the last millennium. In response to historical deforestation of about 18 million sq km, the models simulate a decrease in global mean annual temperature in the range of 0.13-0.25 degrees C. The rate of this cooling accelerated during the 19th century, reached a maximum in the first half of the 20th century, and declined at the end of the 20th century. This trend is explained by temporal and spatial dynamics of land cover changes, as the effect of deforestation on temperature is less pronounced for tropical than for temperate regions, and reforestation in the northern temperate areas during the second part of the 20th century partly offset the cooling trend. In most of the models, land cover changes lead to a decline in annual land evapotranspiration, while seasonal changes are rather equivocal because of spatial shifts in convergence zones. In the future, reforestation might be chosen as an option for the enhancement of terrestrial carbon sequestration. Our study indicates that biogeophysical mechanisms need to be accounted for in the assessment of land management options for climate change mitigation
We apply linear and nonlinear methods to study the properties of surfaces generated by a laser beam melt ablation process. As a result we present a characterization and ordering of the surfaces depending on the adjusted process parameters. Our findings give some insight into the performance of two widely applied multifractal analysis methods-the detrended fluctuation analysis and the wavelet transform modulus maxima method-on short real world data
An increasing number of applications requires user interfaces that facilitate the handling of large geodata sets. Using virtual 3D city models, complex geospatial information can be communicated visually in an intuitive way. Therefore, real-time visualization of virtual 3D city models represents a key functionality for interactive exploration, presentation, analysis, and manipulation of geospatial data. This thesis concentrates on the development and implementation of concepts and techniques for real-time city model visualization. It discusses rendering algorithms as well as complementary modeling concepts and interaction techniques. Particularly, the work introduces a new real-time rendering technique to handle city models of high complexity concerning texture size and number of textures. Such models are difficult to handle by current technology, primarily due to two problems: - Limited texture memory: The amount of simultaneously usable texture data is limited by the memory of the graphics hardware. - Limited number of textures: Using several thousand different textures simultaneously causes significant performance problems due to texture switch operations during rendering. The multiresolution texture atlases approach, introduced in this thesis, overcomes both problems. During rendering, it permanently maintains a small set of textures that are sufficient for the current view and the screen resolution available. The efficiency of multiresolution texture atlases is evaluated in performance tests. To summarize, the results demonstrate that the following goals have been achieved: - Real-time rendering becomes possible for 3D scenes whose amount of texture data exceeds the main memory capacity. - Overhead due to texture switches is kept permanently low, so that the number of different textures has no significant effect on the rendering frame rate. Furthermore, this thesis introduces two new approaches for real-time city model visualization that use textures as core visualization elements: - An approach for visualization of thematic information. - An approach for illustrative visualization of 3D city models. Both techniques demonstrate that multiresolution texture atlases provide a basic functionality for the development of new applications and systems in the domain of city model visualization.
Receiver functions (RF) are used to investigate the upper mantle structure beneath the Eifel, the youngest volcanic area of Central Europe. Data from 96 teleseismic events recorded by 242 seismological stations from permanent and a temporary network has been analysed. The temporary network operated from 1997 November to 1998 June and covered an area of approximately 400 x 250 km(2) centred on the Eifel volcanic fields. The average Moho depth in the Eifel is approximately 30 km, thinning to ca. 28 km under the Eifel volcanic fields. RF images suggest the existence of a low velocity zone at about 60-90 km depth under the West Eifel. This observation is supported by P- and S-wave tomographic results and absorption (but the array aperture limits the resolution of the tomographic methods to the upper 400 km). There are also indications for a zone of elevated velocities at around 200 km depth, again in agreement with S-wave and absorption tomographic results. This anomaly is not visible in P-wave tomography and could be due to S-wave anisotropy. The RF anomalies at the Moho, at 60-90 km, and near 200 km depth have a lateral extent of about 100 km. The 410 km discontinuity under the Eifel is depressed by 15-25 km, which could be explained by a maximum temperature increase of +200 degrees C to +300 degrees C. In the 3-D RF image of the Eifel Plume we also notice two additional currently unexplained conversions between 410 and 550 km depth. They could represent remnants of previous subduction or anomalies due to delayed phase changes. The lateral extent of these conversions and the depression of the 410 km discontinuity is about 200 km. The 660 km discontinuity does not show any depth deviation from its expected value. Our observations are consistent with interpretation in terms of an upper mantle plume but they do not rule out connections to processes at larger depth
Our work goes in two directions. At first we want to transfer definitions, concepts and results of the theory of hyperidentities and solid varieties from the total to the partial case. (1) We prove that the operators chi^A_RNF and chi^E_RNF are only monotone and additive and we show that the sets of all fixed points of these operators are characterized only by three instead of four equivalent conditions for the case of closure operators. (2) We prove that V is n − SF-solid iff clone^SF V is free with respect to itself, freely generated by the independent set {[fi(x_1, . . . , x_n)]Id^SF_n V | i \in I}. (3) We prove that if V is n-fluid and ~V |P(V ) =~V −iso |P(V ) then V is kunsolid for k >= n (where P(V ) is the set of all V -proper hypersubstitutions of type \tau ). (4) We prove that a strong M-hyperquasi-equational theory is characterized by four equivalent conditions. The second direction of our work is to follow ideas which are typical for the partial case. (1) We characterize all minimal partial clones which are strongly solidifyable. (2)We define the operator Chi^A_Ph where Ph is a monoid of regular partial hypersubstitutions.Using this concept, we define the concept of a Phyp_R(\tau )-solid strong regular variety of partial algebras and we prove that a PHyp_R(\tau )-solid strong regular variety satisfies four equivalent conditions.
In this paper we present an inversion algorithm for ill-posed problems arising in atmospheric remote sensing. The proposed method is an iterative Runge-Kutta type regularization method. Those methods are better well known for solving differential equations. We adapted them for solving inverse ill-posed problems. The numerical performances of the algorithm are studied by means of simulations concerning the retrieval of aerosol particle size distributions from lidar observations.
This study introduces a method for multiparallel analysis of small organic compounds in the unicellular green alga Chlamydomonas reinhardtii, one of the premier model organisms in cell biology. The comprehensive study of the changes of metabolite composition, or metabolomics, in response to environmental, genetic or developmental signals is an important complement of other functional genomic techniques in the effort to develop an understanding of how genes, proteins and metabolites are all integrated into a seamless and dynamic network to sustain cellular functions. The sample preparation protocol was optimized to quickly inactivate enzymatic activity, achieve maximum extraction capacity and process large sample quantities. As a result of the rapid sampling, extraction and analysis by gas chromatography coupled to time-of-flight mass spectrometry (GC-TOF) more than 800 analytes from a single sample can be measured, of which over a 100 could be positively identified. As part of the analysis of GC-TOF raw data, aliquot ratio analysis to systematically remove artifact signals and tools for the use of principal component analysis (PCA) on metabolomic datasets are proposed. Cells subjected to nitrogen (N), phosphorus (P), sulfur (S) or iron (Fe) depleted growth conditions develop highly distinctive metabolite profiles with metabolites implicated in many different processes being affected in their concentration during adaptation to nutrient deprivation. Metabolite profiling allowed characterization of both specific and general responses to nutrient deprivation at the metabolite level. Modulation of the substrates for N-assimilation and the oxidative pentose phosphate pathway indicated a priority for maintaining the capability for immediate activation of N assimilation even under conditions of decreased metabolic activity and arrested growth, while the rise in 4-hydroxyproline in S deprived cells could be related to enhanced degradation of proteins of the cell wall. The adaptation to sulfur deficiency was analyzed with greater temporal resolution and responses of wild-type cells were compared with mutant cells deficient in SAC1, an important regulator of the sulfur deficiency response. Whereas concurrent metabolite depletion and accumulation occurs during adaptation to S deprivation in wild-type cells, the sac1 mutant strain is characterized by a massive incapability to sustain many processes that normally lead to transient or permanent accumulation of the levels of certain metabolites or recovery of metabolite levels after initial down-regulation. For most of the steps in arginine biosynthesis in Chlamydomonas mutants have been isolated that are deficient in the respective enzyme activities. Three strains deficient in the activities of N-acetylglutamate-5-phosphate reductase (arg1), N2 acetylornithine-aminotransferase (arg9), and argininosuccinate lyase (arg2), respectively, were analyzed with regard to activation of endogenous arginine biosynthesis after withdrawal of externally supplied arginine. Enzymatic blocks in the arginine biosynthetic pathway could be characterized by precursor accumulation, like the amassment of argininosuccinate in arg2 cells, and depletion of intermediates occurring downstream of the enzymatic block, e.g. N2-acetylornithine, ornithine, and argininosuccinate depletion in arg9 cells. The unexpected finding of substantial levels of the arginine pathway intermediates N-acetylornithine, citrulline, and argininosuccinate downstream the enzymatic block in arg1 cells provided an explanation for the residual growth capacity of these cells in the absence of external arginine sources. The presence of these compounds, together with the unusual accumulation of N-Acetylglutamate, the first intermediate that commits the glutamate backbone to ornithine and arginine biosynthesis, in arg1 cells suggests that alternative pathways, possibly involving the activity of ornithine aminotransferase, may be active when the default reaction sequence to produce ornithine via acetylation of glutamate is disabled.
In view of the importance of charge storage in polymer electrets for electromechanical transducer applications, the aim of this work is to contribute to the understanding of the charge-retention mechanisms. Furthermore, we will try to explain how the long-term storage of charge carriers in polymeric electrets works and to identify the probable trap sites. Charge trapping and de-trapping processes were investigated in order to obtain evidence of the trap sites in polymeric electrets. The charge de-trapping behavior of two particular polymer electrets was studied by means of thermal and optical techniques. In order to obtain evidence of trapping or de-trapping, charge and dipole profiles in the thickness direction were also monitored. In this work, the study was performed on polyethylene terephthalate (PETP) and on cyclic-olefin copolymers (COCs). PETP is a photo-electret and contains a net dipole moment that is located in the carbonyl group (C = O). The electret behavior of PETP arises from both the dipole orientation and the charge storage. In contrast to PETP, COCs are not photo-electrets and do not exhibit a net dipole moment. The electret behavior of COCs arises from the storage of charges only. COC samples were doped with dyes in order to probe their internal electric field. COCs show shallow charge traps at 0.6 and 0.11 eV, characteristic for thermally activated processes. In addition, deep charge traps are present at 4 eV, characteristic for optically stimulated processes. PETP films exhibit a photo-current transient with a maximum that depends on the temperature with an activation energy of 0.106 eV. The pair thermalization length (rc) calculated from this activation energy for the photo-carrier generation in PETP was estimated to be approx. 4.5 nm. The generated photo-charge carriers can recombine, interact with the trapped charge, escape through the electrodes or occupy an empty trap. PETP possesses a small quasi-static pyroelectric coefficient (QPC): ~0.6 nC/(m²K) for unpoled samples, ~60 nC/(m²K) for poled samples and ~60 nC/(m²K) for unpoled samples under an electric bias (E ~10 V/µm). When stored charges generate an internal electric field of approx. 10 V/µm, they are able to induce a QPC comparable to that of the oriented dipoles. Moreover, we observe charge-dipole interaction. Since the raw data of the QPC-experiments on PETP samples is noisy, a numerical Fourier-filtering procedure was applied. Simulations show that the data analysis is reliable when the noise level is up to 3 times larger than the calculated pyroelectric current for the QPC. PETP films revealed shallow traps at approx. 0.36 eV during thermally-stimulated current measurements. These energy traps are associated with molecular dipole relaxations (C = O). On the other hand, photo-activated measurements yield deep charge traps at 4.1 and 5.2 eV. The observed wavelengths belong to the transitions in PETP that are analogous to the π - π* benzene transitions. The observed charge de-trapping selectivity in the photocharge decay indicates that the charge detrapping is from a direct photon-charge interaction. Additionally, the charge de-trapping can be facilitated by photo-exciton generation and the interaction of the photo-excitons with trapped charge carriers. These results indicate that the benzene rings (C6H4) and the dipolar groups (C = O) can stabilize and share an extra charge carrier in a chemical resonance. In this way, this charge could be de-trapped in connection with the photo-transitions of the benzene ring and with the dipole relaxations. The thermally-activated charge release shows a difference in the trap depth to its optical counterpart. This difference indicates that the trap levels depend on the de-trapping process and on the chemical nature of the trap site. That is, the processes of charge detrapping from shallow traps are related to secondary forces. The processes of charge de-trapping from deep traps are related to primary forces. Furthermore, the presence of deep trap levels causes the stability of the charge for long periods of time.
Ontogeny of leptin signalling in the rat hypothalamus: Evidence for selective leptin insensitivity
(2006)
We study the spontaneous emission of a single emitter close to a metallic nanoparticle, with the aim to clarify the distance dependence of the radiative and non-radiative decay rates. We derive analytical formulas based on a dipole- dipole model, and show that the nonradiative decay rate follows a R-6 dependence at short distance, where R is the distance between the emitter and the center of the nanoparticle, as in Forster's energy transfer. The distance dependence of the radiative decay rate is more subtle. It is chiefly dominated by a R-3 dependence, a R-6 dependence being visible at plasmon resonance. The latter is a consequence of radiative damping in the effective dipole polarizability of the nanoparticle. The different distance behavior of the radiative and non-radiative decay rates implies that the apparent quantum yield always vanishes at short distance. Moreover, non-radiative decay is strongly enhanced when the emitter radiates at the plasmon-resonance frequency of the nanoparticle.
Intramontane sedimentary basins along the margin of continental plateaus often preserve strata that contain fundamental information regarding the pattern of orogenic growth. The sedimentary record of the elastic Miocene-Pliocene sequence deposited in the Fiambala Basin, at the southern margin of the Puna Plateau (NW Argentina), documents the late Miocene paleodrainage evolution from headwaters to the west, towards headwaters in the ranges that constitute the border of the Puna Plateau to the north. Apatite Fission track (AFT) thermochronology of sedimentary and basement rocks show that the southern Puna Plateau was the source for the youngest, middle Miocene, detrital population detected in late Miocene rocks; and that the margin of the Puna Plateau expressed a high relief, possibly similar to or higher than at present, by late Miocene time. Cooling ages obtained from basement rocks at the southern Puna margin suggest that exhumation started in the Oligocene and continued until the middle Miocene. We interpret the basin reorganization and the creation of a high relief plateau margin to be the direct response of the source-basin system to a wholesale surface uplift event that may have occurred during the late Cenozoic in the Puna-Altiplano region. At this time coeval paleodrainage reorganization is observed not only in the Fiambala Basin, but also in different basins along the southern and eastern Puna margin, suggesting a genetic link between the last stage of plateau formation and basin response. However, this event did not cause sufficient exhumation of basin bounding ranges to be recorded by AFT thermochronology. Our new data thus document a decoupling between late Cenozoic surface uplift and exhumation in the southern Puna Plateau. High relief achieved at the Puna margin by late Miocene time is linked to Oligocene-Miocene exhumation; no significant erosion (< 3 km) has occurred since in this and highland.
Hypersubstitutions were introduced in [3] as a way of making precise the concepts of hyperidentity and M- hyperidentity. The monoid of hypersubstitutions has been widely studied by many authors. Knowledge of the monoid of hypersubstitutions can be applied to the concept of M-hyperidentities. In this paper, we show that the order of hypersubstitutions of type tau = (3) is 1, 2, 3 or infinite
We present a detailed, realistic analysis of the implementation of a proposal for a quantum phase gate based on atomic vibrational states, specializing it to neutral rubidium atoms on atom chips. We show how to create a double-well potential with static currents on the atom chips, using for all relevant parameters values that are achieved with present technology. The potential barrier between the two wells can be modified by varying the currents in order to realize a quantum phase gate for qubit states encoded in the atomic external degree of freedom. The gate performance is analyzed through numerical simulations; the operation time is similar to 10 ms with a performance fidelity above 99.9%. For storage of the state between the operations the qubit state can be transferred efficiently via Raman transitions to two hyperfine states, where its decoherence is strongly inhibited. In addition we discuss the limits imposed by the proximity of the surface to the gate fidelity.